The sales may be under way but for committed fashionistas the big news is not discounts but the arrival of this season’s pre-collections.

The term can be confusing. ‘Pre-collection?’ I hear you ask. ‘Pre- to what?’ Well, during summer, it’s pre-autumn collections. Winter’s offering, better known as the resort collection, is a pre-spring offering. See? I told you it was confusing.

Selfridges’ director of womenswear, Judd Crane, explains: ‘Pre-collections are the trans-seasonal collections that drop into stores between the Spring/Summer and the Autumn/Winter catwalk collections. In practical terms, they offer a drop of “newness” for fashion-hungry shoppers between seasons.’

‘Pre-collections land in-store at the same time as summer and Christmas markdowns, ensuring lots of fresh pieces for customers bored of sale stock,’ adds Eleanor Robinson, womenswear buying manager at my-wardrobe.com

Michael van der Ham and Mother of Pearl are two young labels debuting pre-collections this year. Demand, says Dutch-born king of deconstructed coo Van Der Hamm, was high. ‘A lot of the department stores we sell to, such as Net-a-Porter, Harvey Nichols and Liberty, asked us for one,’ he says. ‘It’s good to have three deliveries a year rather than two; it gives the customer more choice.’ His first resort collection is due in store in November.

This model seems happy with her outfit choice

Pre-collections open a whole new world in fashion

‘With Mother of Pearl’s growth, a pre-collection was the natural next step,’ says design director Amy Powney. The label, created by Damien Hirst ’s ex-wife Maia Norman, has gone from strength to strength, basing its collections on a unique perspective: each is a marriage between the label and a Brit artist. Gary Hume takes up the baton for MOP’s first pre-collection: his playful prints provide a perfect foil to MOP’s easy sports-inspired silhouettes.

How do pre-collections relate to a designer’s main offering? It seems designers are reserving their more extravagant ideas for the main collections, which – unlike the pre-collections – require full- blown catwalk shows to present them. ‘Catwalk collections will often be more experimental and sit at a higher price whereas pre-collections generally feature the bestselling staples of a brand,’ says Robinson.

‘The real strength of pre-collections lies in their commerciality,’ agrees Crane. ‘They tend to lean towards a very wearable aesthetic, pieces that stand the test of time.’

It’s perhaps not surprising, then, that pre-collection business is booming. ‘Season after season, pre-collections grow for us in terms of sales,’ says Crane. ‘They’re a first taster of what’s to come after sale and that always feels exciting. And, from a buying perspective, the more regularly we can offer new products, the better.

‘Pre-collections are where we’re seeing our biggest growth,’ she continues. ‘The lines deliver early and have a longer selling period than catwalk pieces. In particular, we’re seeing a real appetite for pre-collections with our online customer – we’ve seen double- digit growth in sales of the collections on Selfridges.com compared to 2011.’

For designers, the pre- collection, with its early arrival and longer selling time, is becoming a valuable if not main source of income. ‘I’d typically allocate 60 to 65 per cent of a brand’s budget to their pre-collection,’ says Robinson.

From a range tagged on to main offerings, pre-collections are taking on a life of their own. ‘Designers are beginning to treat them as collections in their own right and they’re becoming just as bold in their impact as some catwalk shows,’ says Robinson. ‘Phillip Lim is a great example of this. His pre-collections pack a real punch.’

What to look out for this season? Strong dresses, says Crane: ‘Roksanda Ilincic, as ever, is a fantastic go-to collection for stand-out colour. Erdem’s beautifully feminine lace detailing is a must-buy – and I love Carven’s simple and sporty styles.’

‘Novelty prints, particularly in knitwear, get the next season off to a fun start. See Markus Lupfer,’ adds Robinson. ‘Shimmer and shine is a trend that runs throughout the season. Look to Preen for skirts and tops in shimmery lace. I love the pencil skirt – I’ll wear it with bare legs now and a chunky knit in winter. Leather features throughout the collections and it’s wise to buy early before the best sell out. Acne has unbelievable leather biker jackets and the best leather leggings can be found in Joseph.’

The pressure is now all on the shopper. Alongside the rails of designer fashion boasting heavy discounts sits a whole new proposition of shiny new clothes. Tempting, very, very, tempting.